Miscanthus to Biocarbon for Canadian Iron and Steel Industries: An Innovative Approach
Iron-based industries are one of the main contributors to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Partial substitution of fossil carbon with renewable biocarbon (biomass) into the blast furnace (BF) process can be a sustainable approach to mitigating GHG emissions from the ironmaking process. However, the m...
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2021-07-01
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| Series: | Energies |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/15/4493 |
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| author | Trishan Deb Abhi Omid Norouzi Kevin Macdermid-Watts Mohammad Heidari Syeda Tasnim Animesh Dutta |
| author_facet | Trishan Deb Abhi Omid Norouzi Kevin Macdermid-Watts Mohammad Heidari Syeda Tasnim Animesh Dutta |
| author_sort | Trishan Deb Abhi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Iron-based industries are one of the main contributors to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Partial substitution of fossil carbon with renewable biocarbon (biomass) into the blast furnace (BF) process can be a sustainable approach to mitigating GHG emissions from the ironmaking process. However, the main barriers of using biomass for this purpose are the inherent high alkaline and phosphorous contents in ash, resulting in fouling, slagging, and scaling on the BF surface. Furthermore, the carbon content of the biomass is considerably lower than coal. To address these barriers, this research proposed an innovative approach of combining two thermochemical conversion methods, namely hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) and slow pyrolysis, for converting biomass into suitable biocarbon for the ironmaking process. Miscanthus, which is one of the most abundant herbaceous biomass sources, was first treated by HTC to obtain the lowest possible ash content mainly due to reduction in alkali matter and phosphorous contents, and then subjected to slow pyrolysis to increase the carbon content. Design expert 11 was used to plan the number of the required experiments and to find the optimal condition for HTC and pyrolysis steps. It was found that the biocarbon obtained from HTC at 199 °C for 28 min and consecutively pyrolyzed at 400 °C for 30 min showed similar properties to pulverized coal injection (PCI) which is currently used in BFs due to its low ash content (0.19%) and high carbon content (79.67%). |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T09:16:31Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-10cc2481328a4b46954ad0ed205c0d5f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1996-1073 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T09:16:31Z |
| publishDate | 2021-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Energies |
| spelling | doaj.art-10cc2481328a4b46954ad0ed205c0d5f2023-11-22T05:33:44ZengMDPI AGEnergies1996-10732021-07-011415449310.3390/en14154493Miscanthus to Biocarbon for Canadian Iron and Steel Industries: An Innovative ApproachTrishan Deb Abhi0Omid Norouzi1Kevin Macdermid-Watts2Mohammad Heidari3Syeda Tasnim4Animesh Dutta5School of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, CanadaSchool of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, CanadaSchool of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, CanadaSchool of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, CanadaSchool of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, CanadaSchool of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, CanadaIron-based industries are one of the main contributors to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Partial substitution of fossil carbon with renewable biocarbon (biomass) into the blast furnace (BF) process can be a sustainable approach to mitigating GHG emissions from the ironmaking process. However, the main barriers of using biomass for this purpose are the inherent high alkaline and phosphorous contents in ash, resulting in fouling, slagging, and scaling on the BF surface. Furthermore, the carbon content of the biomass is considerably lower than coal. To address these barriers, this research proposed an innovative approach of combining two thermochemical conversion methods, namely hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) and slow pyrolysis, for converting biomass into suitable biocarbon for the ironmaking process. Miscanthus, which is one of the most abundant herbaceous biomass sources, was first treated by HTC to obtain the lowest possible ash content mainly due to reduction in alkali matter and phosphorous contents, and then subjected to slow pyrolysis to increase the carbon content. Design expert 11 was used to plan the number of the required experiments and to find the optimal condition for HTC and pyrolysis steps. It was found that the biocarbon obtained from HTC at 199 °C for 28 min and consecutively pyrolyzed at 400 °C for 30 min showed similar properties to pulverized coal injection (PCI) which is currently used in BFs due to its low ash content (0.19%) and high carbon content (79.67%).https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/15/4493biocarbonhydrothermal carbonization (HTC)slow pyrolysispulverized coal injection (PCI)blast furnace (BF)CO<sub>2</sub> emission mitigation |
| spellingShingle | Trishan Deb Abhi Omid Norouzi Kevin Macdermid-Watts Mohammad Heidari Syeda Tasnim Animesh Dutta Miscanthus to Biocarbon for Canadian Iron and Steel Industries: An Innovative Approach Energies biocarbon hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) slow pyrolysis pulverized coal injection (PCI) blast furnace (BF) CO<sub>2</sub> emission mitigation |
| title | Miscanthus to Biocarbon for Canadian Iron and Steel Industries: An Innovative Approach |
| title_full | Miscanthus to Biocarbon for Canadian Iron and Steel Industries: An Innovative Approach |
| title_fullStr | Miscanthus to Biocarbon for Canadian Iron and Steel Industries: An Innovative Approach |
| title_full_unstemmed | Miscanthus to Biocarbon for Canadian Iron and Steel Industries: An Innovative Approach |
| title_short | Miscanthus to Biocarbon for Canadian Iron and Steel Industries: An Innovative Approach |
| title_sort | miscanthus to biocarbon for canadian iron and steel industries an innovative approach |
| topic | biocarbon hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) slow pyrolysis pulverized coal injection (PCI) blast furnace (BF) CO<sub>2</sub> emission mitigation |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/15/4493 |
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